


Code

by Talon_C



Category: Sword Art Online (Anime & Manga), inFAMOUS (Video Games)
Genre: Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-14
Packaged: 2021-03-16 14:13:49
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 13,646
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29951175
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Talon_C/pseuds/Talon_C
Summary: Tossed back into the real world, Kazuto Kirigaya thought that he could fit back in well enough, finish his rehab, catch up on schoolwork, all that jazz. But now there was talk of yakuza, a rather cold vigilante, a reformed military group, and three hundred players trapped in some weird fairy game. And to cap it all off, Kazuto was a Conduit now. Fun stuff.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 6





	1. Taken

**Author's Note:**

> Decided to bring my FFN story "Code" to AO3. Hope you like it and please leave a review or something.

Simply put, rehabilitation was a bitch to handle.

Kazuto Kirigaya sighed as he took some bacon in his fingers and stuck the piece in his mouth, content in knowing that he won't have to go through it ever again. At least, the more extensive rehab sessions. Kazuto was still required to hobble around with a cane for the next four weeks before he could walk without it, but that was better than having to be rolled around by his cousin/sister Suguha, who was eating just across from him. Granted, he loved Suguha dearly and didn't mind her helping him too terribly, but he couldn't help but feel like their relationship had strained the last couple of years. Kazuto... he honestly thought he wasn't a good brother.

Kazuto shook his head. _Scratch that, I've been a terrible brother._

It was like the proverb said; with absence the heart grows fonder, and Kazuto found himself being swallowed by guilt the moment he spent the next week in SAO without her. Suguha had done so much for him, defending him against their overbearing grandfather and practically throwing herself into kendo to the point of it becoming her full-time job just because Kazuto didn't want to do it in favor of immersing himself into the digital world. Kazuto really couldn't help but feel as if he forced Suguha to work as hard as she does without compensation.

Strangely though, Kazuto thought that the moment he woke back up from SAO, Suguha would push him away as he did to her. Yet she hadn't; quite the opposite, actually. In spite of how Kazuto himself felt, Suguha continued to interact with him day in and day out. She hadn't asked about anything related to SAO, which was something of a relief to him since the memories of SAO left him with this deeply-rooted feeling of longing that almost physical hurt the more it remained.

Asuna Yuuki. The love of his life, yet also one of the three hundred remaining SAO players that had yet to wake for some strange reason.

It worried him and it even slightly angered him to an extent. Something or someone was keeping Asuna away from him in spite of the vows they made to each other. Their promises of a good life in the real world. Kazuto had even promised to find a way to bring Yui, their virtual daughter, to the real world so that she may see it for herself.

 _One thing at a time,_ Kazuto thought. He'd cross that bridge when he got there, but for now, he had more pressing engagements. Like going for his scheduled walk.

After he had finished eating, Kazuto ventured into the bathroom to wash his face. Running the cold water across his face, Kazuto looked up to see his reflection. His hair had grown to where it stopped just shy of his shoulders, though he had it cut back into its original length.

As far as he was concerned, long hair was rather difficult to manage.

Kazuto had walked out of the bathroom and went to put on his street clothes. Since it was pretty hot, he decided to wear a black tank top with black pants and a black hoodie that slipped from his shoulders, leaving them bare and showing his still lean but slightly toned arms. Now that Kazuto thought about it, he may have become too attached to the black color scheme, but that didn't really matter at the moment.

After all, black was Asuna's lucky color.

"Sugu, I'm going for a walk," Kazuto said. "I'll be back... probably."

"Okay," was Suguha's reply with a smile. "Be careful."

"I will," Kazuto said. "... hopefully."

Walking out the door, Kazuto turned right and started walking.

* * *

Finding himself walking the streets of the Saitama Prefecture, Kazuto had made sure to keep a sharp eye out for anything dangerous nearby, such as speeding vehicles, suspicious persons, and, well, members of the yakuza.

The yakuza, even before the events of the Sword Art Online incident, had been losing ground for the past couple of years now and were losing members fast, whether through death, arrests, or they simply left altogether. However, in desperate attempts to bring themselves back up, they had decided to take children and teenagers from the streets. Some were homeless or lived in an abusive household and were thus promised a chance at a better life. Such was the case for those that joined the Auntie Shu's.

Others, on the opposite end of the spectrum, simply stole children and teens by force. Their motives were mostly unknown, but one of the more likely stories was that they were take because children were the most impressionable and the like.

In order to crack down on this, self-defense laws were enacted so that parents and teens in question would be able to use aggressive force in order to protect either themselves or their loved ones. Originally, you could never escalate to violence except if there is a clear distinct risk of very serious injury or death, but with the rise in yakuza activity, officials had to make the changes so that force could be used when necessary to make sure that either you or your children were not taken. They were still very strict when it came to things leading to killing, but one had more clemency if the only thing you delivered was a bruise or a bloody nose.

Which, even then, didn't apply to Kazuto since he was still somewhat crippled and couldn't defend himself because of it. He would certainly try, but that would probably only delay the inevitable.

Or hasten his demise.

Still, Kazuto would not die anytime soon. It haunted him, imagining Asuna waking up after two years of fighting for their freedom only to discover that her in-game husband had been killed.

As mentioned before, Asuna herself had yet to actually wake from her coma. As well as three hundred of SAO's other players. Something about that just didn't sit right with him, rubbed him the wrong way, made alarm bells ring. Any analogy in order to describe the suspicious feeling he had. Kazuto did not know and he certainly didn't know where to start.

But either way, when Asuna woke up, Kazuto would greet her with open arms.

Other than that, Kazuto had noticed that something... strange had happened to him ever since he woke.

For one, at random intervals, he would hear... something. Something that sounded similar to radio static. He would turn around trying to find the source of the noise, but it was hard to do that when it felt like it was coming from all directions. Sometimes, when he passed by screens, they would glitch and suddenly go haywire. He would distinctly hear people complaining that their phones were doing the same thing, most alleging it to a hacker prank.

However, Kazuto knew for a fact that a hacker couldn't make his brain start buzzing and hissing, like a family of bees decided to make themselves right at home within the confines of his own skull. Sometimes it was negligible, other times it was unbearable, though Kazuto had just chalked this up as some type of minor brain damage.

This was the initial thought until they actually gave him scans of his brain. Everything was completely normal even with the slight increase in overall activity. Kazuto was no neurologist or psychologist by any means, but he didn't think buzzing within the brain was normal under any circumstance.

Kazuto had walked through a park, alone with his thoughts and memories of his and Asuna's time away from the frontlines. Kazuto was particularly fond of these ones since they, of course, were the most peaceful.

Though Kazuto couldn't help but blush when he remembered the one time he arrived home from shopping only to be greeted by Asuna dressed in nothing more than a red apron.

_Damn my stupid hormones._

Placing himself on a bench to rest his grievously tired legs for a moment, Kazuto diverted his thoughts from that particularly risque memory to a more wholesome one. Perhaps the days after they encountered Yui? Yeah, those were good ones. In spite of the fact that she was an AI, Yui just felt so... alive. Felt so human.

Felt so... real.

_Yui... I'll bring you here to the real world. Count on it._

Kazuto only now realized that he had been staring at the sunset for a while now. It was catching up pretty close to seven p.m. and he knew for a fact that Suguha would worry if he didn't get home soon. Grabbing his cane and getting to his feet, Kazuto limped as fast as he could to the general direction of home, which proved to be a bad idea since both his legs ached terribly and...

The Static was back.

But with a vengeance.

Kazuto found himself dropping to one knee while he gripped his cane until his knuckles were bone-white. The Static caused his head to throb violently as if something had settled into his skull before pushing outward in all directions. Kazuto's hands slipped from his cane as he fell on the stone path while his consciousness slipped between his fingers like sand.

Just before Kazuto finally succumbed to the blackness, he saw two figures make their way to him.

* * *

...

Slowly yet surely, Kazuto had awoken moments later to see that he was being held inside what seemed to be a van judging by the size of the interior space and the fact that they were moving fast. Kazuto could make out a few words between two figures at the front of the vehicle where a steel wall and barred windows separated them.

"... you think he'll be worth it?" Figure One, the one at the passenger seat, asked.

"Potentially..." was the reply of Figure Two, who was the one driving. "From what the boss said, Former SAO players are very rare considering how protective of them corporations are. They say the 'FullDive System might've messed up they're cognitive functions to a weird degree' or something like that, but if you want my honest opinion, I think they just want them for whatever weird super soldier thing they might have."

"Jesus shit, you're still hung up on that whole super soldier crap that Shoji told you?" Figure One asked. "I mean don't get me wrong, I wouldn't be surprise if they had something like that, but you think they might have something a little more... original?"

"Like what?"

"Well... I heard that sixteen years ago, there was a small group of... meta-human cases over in America," Figure One, who was starting to gain more definition in Kazuto's vision, said. "Seattle mainly."

"You mean like super strength and shit like that? Super speed? Flesh-eating death gaze?"

"No, nothing generic like that," Figure One replied. "I'm talking the kinds of guys who can make reality their bitch."

...

Kazuto held a look of utter confusion and, though unknown to him, so did Figure Two.

_What are they talking about?_

"Uh... care to elaborate?" Figure Two asked awkwardly.

"I heard there was this one guy who could literally use smoke as a weapon, like move it around with his mind, fly with it," Figure One listed. "Hell, he could even turn _into_ smoke."

"You mean... the Conduits?"

"Yeah! Conduits!" Figure One replied while snapping his fingers. "Y'know, if you actually watched the news or listened to the meetings, apparently there's a Conduit or something on the loose here in Japan. The boss said so himself and there's footage of him in action."

Kazuto blinked in surprise. One of those Conduits was right here in their homeland? Since when? What even was a Conduit? This was the first time he was even hearing of these people.

"Wait, what?" Figure Two asked numbly. "You mean... one of those weirdos is fucking here?!"

"Oh yeah, and he's been taking down rivals, but only the ones who take the smaller kids," Figure One said, suddenly getting serious. "They swoop in, turn the joint into a winter wonderland, free the children, snatch the money, then they make like Usain and bolt. Law enforcement's been having a field day just about this one guy, saying he's unbeatable. I've even seen officers taking one look at a scene and then do an immediate U-turn."

"Holy hell... wait, what do you mean by winter wonderland?"

"I mean this guy uses ice as his power, and I'm not talking about the guy using ice weapons, I mean like giant ice waves, spikes, walls, glaciers, people _frozen_ in ice... it's fucking scary," Figure One replied. "Conduits tend to have control over one type of thing and this one uses ice. Dry ice, rime ice, permafrost, snow, cold waves, diamond dust, you name it."

"... shit."

"'Shit' is right, my man," Figure One said. "You see this guy, then you better scramble like an egg before he folds you like an omelet."

"Bro, what is it with you and the bullshit metaphors today?"

"Hey, just be thankful I didn't use anything generic like 'make like a banana and split,'" Figure One replied before turning his attention to the rear view mirror. "Oh shit, guy's awake."

Finally being addressed, Kazuto spoke, "I'm guessing you took me for a reason?"

Figure One scoffed, "Yeah, boss thinks you might be useful and I don't question a sizeable profit for simple tasks like this."

"So I take it you're yakuza?" Kazuto asked, though he already knew the answer.

"Yeah, and what of it?" Figure Two, now Yakuza Two, retorted. "Look, just be cooperative and things won't get complicated. Besides, you can't really go anywhere since you're still using a crutch."

Kazuto looked down at the aforementioned crutch and gripped it. They were right, he had no way to get out of a situation like this since he can barely run. Fighting them would be suicidal and Kazuto didn't know their motives for sure. They're reasoning behind the kidnappings was rumor and speculation at best and Kazuto would only center his beliefs around the evidence.

But this whole talk of Conduits threw him off a bit.

"So... Conduits?" Kazuto asked while Yakuza One hummed. "And there's one here in Japan?"

"Yeah, turned up one day right at the beginning of the SAO incident's second year," Yakuza One said. "Some people call him the Frozen Terror, the Frozen Demon, the Collector, the Ice King, things like that."

"Oh? And what do you call him?" Kazuto asked.

"Eh, just the Ice Man, really," Yakuza One replied, shrugging his shoulders before making a sharp turn into an alley. "Boss doesn't seem too worried about it for some reason, but this fucking guy puts the fear of God in me, like, if you told me that he fed on the hopes and dreams of his enemies, I'd believe you."

Kazuto quirked a brow. People controlling smoke and ice like magic was one thing, but feeding on hopes and dreams sounded just plain stupid.

"Has this guy... killed people?" Kazuto couldn't help but ask.

Kazuto could very well see both the curiosity on Yakuza Two's face while Yakuza One's face went apprehensive.

He already knew the answer then and there.

"Hmph... yeah... but it's only people like mass murderers and rapists so we should be fine," Yakuza One replied.

Kazuto nodded, "Okay, and what about the boss? What's he like?" Kazuto asked.

Yakuza One grunted, "The boss hired us not too long ago, but I can say without a shadow of a doubt that he knows what he's doing," Yakuza One said. "He apparently used to be a doctor of some variety... neurosurgeon, I think. I think he also used to work for a tech company, but he never said which."

Kazuto grimaced, "Don't tell me I'm gonna be a lab rat..."

Yakuza Two shook his head, "Nah, he's more like an examiner as far as I've seen and heard," he said. "He'll look you up and down before letting you go... but I can never tell what's he's looking for. But safe to say, I don't think you'll end up with probes up your ass if that's what you were wondering."

Kazuto shivered at the thought, but the Yakuza's words did alleviate his stress, even if only a little.

Before they knew it, the vehicle had made a couple of turns before slowing to a stop.

"Okay kid, remember, cooperate and don't be difficult," Yakuza Two remarked before opening his door. Kazuto followed the sound of footfalls against concrete before the doors to the back of the van opened, revealing Yakuza One and Two with One gesturing for Kazuto to move.

Planting his crutch against the floor of the van, Kazuto hobbled out of the vehicle. Nearly stumbling, Yakuza One grabbed Kazuto by the arm to stop his fall.

"Careful kid," he said as he helped Kazuto back to his feet.

Kazuto nodded before the two yakuza led the way.

He just hoped that he would get out of this alive.

* * *

Entering a rather unassuming building which used to be home to a vacuum cleaner company, Kazuto looked around to see what was more liked a casino and bar. Various other yakuza members, male and female alike, were settled either around tables or leaning against walls and railings while conversing with their comrades. Some turned to look at Kazuto himself before going back to whatever it was they were doing, whether it was a card game and/or their drinks.

Soon enough, the two yakuza escorting Kazuto led him to an elevator. Entering the elevator, Yakuza Two pressed a couple of buttons, each one glowing red before the elevator doors closed. Kazuto felt the elevator suddenly begin going down while the entire ride was dead silent. No music or anything, so things got a tad awkward.

Thankfully, it didn't take too long to get to their destination.

The three entered an what looked like a barely personalized office space with a desk and chair. The chair was facing the opposite direction of the elevator and the three guests. On one side of the rather spacious office was a desk and an assortment of medical equipment.

All of it giving Kazuto flashbacks of rehab.

"Boss, we brought him here, just as you asked," Yakuza One said as Yakuza Two nodded.

"Thank you... I told you that you're patience would be rewarded... tell Genshirou that drinks are on me," said a voice. "You've earned it."

Both yakuza bowed while smiling.

"Thanks, boss," said Yakuza Two before turning his attention to Kazuto. "Good luck, kid."

Both yakuza entered the elevator with Yakuza One pressing a button. The elevator doors then closed.

Leaving Kazuto with the apparent boss of this resident yakuza group.

The office chair turned, revealing a pale man with short auburn hair and yellowish eyes. He wore a black button-up shirt, a white tie, and what appeared to be a black surgical mask over his face. He leafed through a few files on his desk which had bore the symbol of the hospital Kazuto was appointed to, much to his surprise.

"Hmm... Kazuto Kirigaya, sixteen, and survivor of the Sword Art Online Crisis," said the pale man. "At last, we meet."

Kazuto was nonplussed, "Have we... met before?" Kazuto asked, blinking in confusion. From what the yakuza that drove him here said, this man was a former doctor and he had records from his given hospital. So either this man was just immensely resourceful in the medical community, or he used to work there.

Or both.

"No. My name is Kai Chisaki and I'm the leader of the yakuza organization known as the Shie Hissaikai," said the now-named Kai Chisaki. "I'm also a former neurosurgeon and a former employee for Argus, but you already knew the first bit."

Kazuto fidgeted nervously. A yakuza group with a name like the Eight Precepts of Death sounded pretty menacing and probably had the manpower to back it up. Although he was much more unnerved by the fact that he used to work for Argus, the same company that developed the FullDive system.

"Okay, I'm here now," Kazuto said. "Now what do you want with me?"

Kai said nothing as he ventured over towards the area with the medical bed and equipment, "You also already know of the Conduits that have roamed this world ever since their sudden appearance sixteen years ago," Kai said, fingering some scalpels laid out neatly over a plate before placing the files upon the desk next to the equipment. "I know this because I closely monitor the actions and words of my followers, including the ones in the vehicle used to bring you to me."

Kazuto raised a brow in confusion, "You... are you looking for Conduits?"

Kai nodded, "Yes... I've spent the last fourteen years studying them from afar, going through old medical records, all while getting the rest of my funding from Argus, basically finding out what exactly makes Conduits tick," Kai said. "As such, I was able to develop the ability to see whether someone carries the Conduit gene."

"Conduit gene? It's genetic?" Kazuto asked with both brows raised.

Kai nodded again before pulling out a small notebook from the stack of books next to both files and medical equipment, "Yes. Conduits are a sub-species of humans who possess superhuman abilities afforded to them by the presence of the aforementioned Conduit gene, and I reserve the ability to see these genes," Kai replied, flipping over the notebook and showing Kazuto a rough sketch of a Conduit gene. "There are three classifications of Conduits; Conduit Positive, Force Conduit, and Prime Conduits."

"Okay, and what are those?" Kazuto asked.

Kai ventured over to a side bar and opened a cabinet, "Conduit Positives are individual carriers of an inactive Conduit gene who haven't manifested any superhuman abilities of their own," Kai said as he pulled out a bottle of orange juice. "But they have the potential to develop superhuman abilities upon Conduit gene activation."

Kazuto nodded, "Okay, and what about Force Conduits?"

Kai pulled out two glass and set them on a table between two couches, "Force Conduits are the ones who have had superhuman abilities bestowed or grafted unto them via external means," Kai replied, pouring the orange juice into the glasses before gesturing for Kazuto to take a seat.

Kazuto reluctantly placed himself on the couch opposite to Kai. Kai gestured once again towards the cup of orange juice in front of Kazuto, at the same time removing his face mask to take a sip for himself.

Kazuto slowly took a sip, sighing in slight satisfaction, "Alright... and what about the Prime Conduits?" Kazuto asked. "I'd imagine by the name that the Primes are much more special?"

Kai nodded, "You could say that," he replied. "Prime Conduits... they are the individual carriers of an _active_ Conduit gene which enables the development and manifestation of their own set of superhuman abilities."

Kazuto blinked before looking down at the floor, his mind still trying to process all this Conduit business. As if things couldn't get crazier... first the yakuza kidnappings, then the SAO crisis, and now he was learning about the more-than-decade-long existence of literal superhumans!

What the hell else was next?! Transformers?!

"So... do I have the gene?" Kazuto asked, afraid of the answer.

In that moment, Kazuto swore that Kai's eyes shine an even brighter yellow, almost becoming neon. Kai's stare was critical and roamed Kazuto's entire form almost to point where Kazuto felt the urge to cover himself helplessly, as if he were laid naked and bare to this man.

Though thankfully, it didn't take all that long before Kai blinked a couple of times. Kai hummed to himself as he lifted himself from the couch, walked over towards his main desk, and pressed a button on his answering machine.

"Genshirou, this is Kai... I think we found another one," Kai said looking at Kazuto.

Kazuto himself flinched in shock and confusion, "H-Hey wait, what do you mean?!"

"Bring in Toshi and Nagi," Kai ordered while Kazuto tried his best to rise quickly from his seat. Kazuto heard some kind of chatter come from the machine, but he ignored most of it in favor of finding easily accessible escape routes. "And bring them quick, he's trying to escape."

Kazuto, in his rush to move, stumbled over onto one knee, feeling his legs severely aching while the Static had returned, though it was to a much lesser degree than the one that brought him into this situation in the first place.

Kazuto wanted to strangle the thing or person responsible for putting such a thing in his head. Kazuto did not care if that particular desire did not make sense at the moment. He was in too much physical and mental distress to care.

Before he knew it, Kazuto felt two pairs of hands grasping him by the biceps before hoisting him up, to which they began to drag him away. His crutch, which he had dropped from the sudden movements, was picked up by Kai.

Kai grinned a small bit under his mask as he inspected the crutch. Seeing it and holding it gave him a miniscule feeling of nostalgia.

"It'll be okay, Kirigaya," Kai said. "You'll come out of this either alive... or with unimaginable power at your disposal. Take him to the chamber."

Kazuto blinked in confusion and panic before being dragged away. He didn't bother struggling, he knew he could do very little against these people in the state he was in currently.

He just prayed that he'd come out of this alive.

* * *

Kai sighed as he watched the Kirigaya boy being dragged off to a special place that Kai had commissioned specifically to test the willpower and mental capacities of their newer recruits.

But this time... it would be different.

Kai did not want him to be sent to their arena as he did not want his men to potentially walk away either being severely injured by newly unleashed Conduit power of the unknown variety or to walk away feeling bad about kicking a cripple while he was down.

The second issue was that he lacked the equipment that a certain military force from back then had which was specifically designed to forcefully activate Conduit genes.

So, being the resourceful leader that he was, found another way.

Technology in the world had come a long way, as per humanity's ungodly ability to adapt and innovate. The FullDive System created by Akihiko Kayaba was one pleasant yet also unpleasant example of this. Yes, they were now able to create entire worlds and manipulate both it and its inhabitants not unlike that of a god, but it also showed that such a thing can be used to the detriment of others.

Kai shook his head as he remembered the amount of people who had died from the SAO incident, although it was rather kind to call it as such, but he was digressing.

However, Kai had studied Kirigaya for a long time now (being a former Argus employee and doctor with many connections had its perks) and knew that a simple beatdown would not cause enough stress to trigger his Conduit gene (if it would activate at all).

But what would he be willing to do if put under severe mental turmoil? Especially with relief just beyond arm's reach.

Yes, it would be cruel, but it would all be for the sake of his research.

Kai blinked before chuckling to himself. Listen to him, doing something cruel to an innocent man for the sake of his research. Made him sound like a deranged scientist who had little to no care for the morality of the situation.

Well... considering everything that's happened, that probably wasn't too far off the mark. But for now, he would just have to wait and see.

Kai blinked once again as he felt his phone vibrate for a moment. Pulling out his phone from his pants pocket, he turned it on to see it was his right hand man calling him. Clicking on the answer icon, Kai brought the phone to his head.

"Ah, Hari, has Kirigaya's legal guardian been notified?" Kai asked.

 _"Yes. I told them and they are quite distraught,"_ Hari replied. _"They, of course, want him back."_

"I'm sure they do," Kai said as he proceeded to leaf through a file he had picked up along the way. "Tell them that the boy will be returned within the week depending on results."

_"Yes, sir."_

With that, the call had ended and Kai pocketed his phone. Of course, he wasn't just going to take someone and leave their family in the dark.

* * *

Kazuto grunted as he was tossed unceremoniously onto a wire-made floor while hearing the sound of a heavy set of doors closing before locking. Groaning, Kazuto grabbed his crutch and propped himself on it, although he was doing so rather shakily.

He looked around to see that he had been thrown into a chamber where the walls, floor, and ceiling were lined with strange, thick wedges, all of which were colored a very dull grey.

The entire room just felt completely... dead.

Where... just where was he?!

* * *

Kai watched the inside of the chamber that his newest... candidate was thrown into through a very small camera which connected to his monitor. As always, there was that very minuscule ping of guilt for what he was doing to the boy, but Kai quickly suppressed the feeling.

"The anechoic chamber..." Kai muttered to himself as he watched Kazuto whip his head in several directions before hurriedly placing himself in the chair in the center of the chamber.

The anechoic chamber, which means no echo, was a special room where the walls, ceiling, and floor were lined with thick fiberglass acoustic wedges. A floor made of wire allowed people to step on the floor and underneath it were more acoustic wedges. These things make the room almost completely echo free.

The sound level in the room was at negative nine point four decibels, but humans can only hear sounds above zero decibels (an average quiet room is about thirty decibels). This meant that the room was so quiet that anyone put inside would soon begin to hear sounds from their stomach, heart, lungs, and even sounds that your ears would make when there is an absence of sound. The other senses are amplified without the reflection of sound off the walls and, without these reflections, balance is thrown off and the person inside the room must sit, hence Kazuto's desperate need to be in the chair. In a room like this, there were little to no cues for a person to orient themselves.

One person in America was able to withstand the quiet of such a chamber in Minnesota for forty-five minutes, but most can't last more than thirty minutes, and some can't even make it inside the room at all. The complete disorientation would just be too much for their systems to handle.

Kai felt yet another ping of guilt as he watched Kazuto begin to hold his head in his hands while his left leg bounced. Twelve minutes had passed and yet there had been no results. Perhaps Kazuto was much stronger-willed than Kai had previously anticipated.

Kazuto's knee continued to bounce while his index finger began to tap against his head. Perhaps he was now hearing the sound of his own blood rushing to his brain?

...

...

...

Kai checked his watch, his yellow eyes narrowed as the twenty minute mark passed. Kai immediately shifted his attention back at Kazuto, only to widen his eyes as Kazuto began shaking.

Kai pressed a button on his machine, intending to order his men to take Kazuto out. He wanted to put enough stress on him to produce results, not break the boy.

"Toshi, you might want to remove-"

Kai stopped in his tracks as his surveillance screen began to... shimmer. Distorted digital blocks danced across the screen along with deep-sounding static not unlike that of an untuned radio.

Kai began watching with rapt attention. Finally, results.

"Actually, nevermind," Kai corrected. "Do nothing."

Kai removed his finger from the call button as he watched Kazuto struggle to escape the chamber.

_Now... let us see your true potential._

...

_Wait... are those... pixels?_

* * *

How long had Kazuto been placed in this accursed chamber? Minutes? Hours? He couldn't possibly know.

At first, Kazuto didn't know what the purpose of this room was supposed to be. But... things began to go wrong quick. Too quick. Too much.

He could... hear? Could he hear? Kazuto, once again, didn't know. He could hear, and yet he couldn't.

For once, he wanted the Static to return just so he could hear... something. Anything! Please! Anything at all!

In a moment of desperation, he tried so hard imagining Asuna whispering sweet nothings into his ear while holding her in his embrace. He tried so hard to imagine Suguha's words of encouragement as he powered on through his rehabilitation. He tried so hard to imagine his Aunt Midori doting on him about eating right and spending more time outside. Hell, he even tried to imagine Kai's condescending and clinical tone as he looked at him like he wanted to dissect him.

Instead, all these things were drowned out by his heart thumping in his chest like a war drum, the rush of blood coursing just beneath his pale skin, the churning of his stomach as it was almost twisted into a painful knot.

_Please... please just... just let me out!_

To hell with it! Even if the attempt was futile, Kazuto leapt from the chair and began slamming his fists into the door, though there was, once again, no sound. He felt a strange buzz start from the tips of his clenched fingers and then work its way down his arms, a feeling akin to when your limbs fell asleep due to lack of circulation. Maybe he was hallucinating, but he thought he saw his arms flicker with a bluish hue.

"Someone! Anyone! Let me out, please!" Kazuto begged. At least, he think he begged. He couldn't even hear the sound of his own voice, though he could definitely feel the vibrating of his vocal cords.

In fact, he felt them much more clearly than he should have, feeling as if was something had just shivered in his neck.

Kazuto, knowing that what he was doing was most likely not going to work, turned back to the room. Back to the vault doors, Kazuto slid down as his breathing quickened, burying his head once more in his arms in another effort to calm himself down. Rocking back and forth, Kazuto whimpered (or at least he think he did), wanting this... this torture to stop!

_Please... just let me out..._

There was that buzzing again, but this time it was in both his arms and his torso.

_Let me out._

The feeling spread from his torso to his pelvis and then his legs. The lights began to flicker in and out.

_Let me out!_

His whole body was now buzzing. His body quivered and convulsed as... something... in him began to pulse violently.

_LET ME OUT!_

He just...

He couldn't bear it any longer.

"PLEASE JUST LET ME OUT!"

_**BZZT!** _

_**CRACKLE!** _

_**BOOM!** _

* * *

Kai quickly grabbed onto his desk as the entire complex shook from the sheer force of the... shockwave, or whatever it was. Dust fell from the ceiling, his ceiling fan swayed a bit, and his medical equipment and side bar rattled and clinked. The live feed had just up and died from what was probably an explosion of... whatever power he had.

Well, either way, Kirigaya possibly unlocked his power, even if his anechoic chamber was potentially destroyed.

All for the sake of his research.

Hurriedly, Kai got up from his seat and fast-walked to the elevator. Pressing a series of buttons, Kai grunted impatiently as the elevator moved upwards in what felt like a snail's pace. On the off hand, he shouldn't complain about this one minor annoyance when he basically ordered an innocent boy to be thrown into one of the world's quietest rooms.

He just hoped the damage to his mental capacities wasn't too severe. If Kirigaya despised him for what he did, so be it, but as long as he got results and his mind was still intact. Really, Kai couldn't blame the poor boy even if he wanted to. Kai too would hate someone if they forced him to endure such a harrowing ordeal.

_Still, whatever was happening to Kirigaya was quite odd. Pixels everywhere... I thought it would be something like electrokinesis or pyrokinesis._

Either way, Kirigaya was bound to walk away with immense power at his disposal and what he did with said power was up to him.

Kai flinched from his thoughts as his phone vibrated. Whipping out his phone in a practiced motion, Kai blinked as his phone's screen had glitched and flickered blue for a moment before everything went back to normal. Kai pressed the answer icon and placed the phone to his head.

"This is Kai."

_"Boss! You felt that, right?!"_

Kai nodded, "I did, rather difficult not to."

_"Okay, so what do you want us to do?"_

"Nothing," Kai warned immediately. "No one is to go near Kirigaya. What happened to him?"

_"Hold on, I'm just getting there... holy shit... a-anyways, he's just lying there and there're these weird blue squares around him. I think he's out cold."_

"That's good, but still, do not go near him," Kai warned again. "I'll be there shortly."

Kai hung up the phone before he shivered in anticipation. This was exciting... first the ice Conduit and now a new one with freshly-unlocked power. Everything was changing.

Though, he would be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to the looks on Kirigaya's family's faces.


	2. Pixels and Polygons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tossed back into the real world, Kazuto Kirigaya thought that he could fit back in well enough, finish his rehab, catch up on schoolwork, all that jazz. But now there was talk of yakuza, a rather cold vigilante, a reformed military group, and three hundred players trapped in some weird fairy game. And to cap it all off, Kazuto was a Conduit now. Fun stuff.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Now, as a word of warning, and something I should've mentioned in the first chapter was that Code will be very reference-heavy, especially the My Hero Academia ones. As you could probably tell, Kai Chisaki was a character based off the one from My Hero Academia and there will probably be many others like him.
> 
> Thank you for reading and please send a review. I'd like to hear what you have to say so that I can improve going forward.

Suffice it to say, not even Kai expected the sheer _level_ of damage done to both the anechoic chamber and the area surrounding it. Thankfully, no one was too close to the blast zone which would result in potential casualties. The only living person to get hurt was Toshi, who had only received some pretty bad bruising when he was pushed back, but he had experienced worst in the past and had a couple scars on his leg to prove it.

Kai stared incredulously alongside his comrades at the sight of the completely decimated anechoic chamber (he'd have to commission a new one), the vault doors being both blasted off their hinges and being almost completely caved in while pieces of the walls and acoustic wedges were scattered about the place.

However, the part that had them in such a state of shock was the number of very large swords stuck to the surrounding rubble, each one nearly the size of a small tree. Some swords were blue, some were purple, and they all seemed to shimmer and distort slightly, not unlike that of a video game glitch. There were too many of these swords to count and there were blue, white, and purple polygons that shifted around the place. A gentle, yet powerful hum filled their ears and sent shivers throughout their bodies.

_This... this is extraordinary!_

Kai pulled out his phone to see that, once again, it was going haywire. It seemed that whatever power Kirigaya possessed had something to do with electrical devices or his power was simply producing microwaves in a manner that created some amount of interference. But...

While it is not outside the realm of possibility for Conduits to create weapons out of their elements in some fashion, the swords that Kirigaya had manifested did not appear to be made of any element that Kai could immediately identify. It most certainly wasn't ice or fire, but it was indeed solid. Well, at least they _appeared_ solid. The pixels and polygons were something else entirely. They looked solid, yet didn't.

This would require further investigation.

_But first things first, let's find Kirigaya._

Kai stowed his phone away before carefully making his way to the source of the explosion. At the center of the rather sizeable crater lied Kazuto himself, his body in a fetal position as more of those strange blue polygons floated and fluttered around his body, creating what sounded like a deep buzzing mixed with high-pitched warbling.

_Hmm, what an odd sound._

"Hey boss, what do you want us to do?"

Kai turned to see Toshi, one of his most loyal comrades and one of the Eight Precepts. His outfit was dirtied a bit and there was some tearing, but the damage wasn't too bad. His hair was pretty disheveled and his face had specks of rubble, but nothing that a shower and a trip to a local tailor couldn't fix.

Kai hummed as he looked back at Kazuto. The boy was out cold and likely would be for the next few days at most since the Conduit gene within him would begin the reconditioning process.

According to the research of those before him, the activation of a Conduit gene can affect the very physiology of the Conduit. These changes in physiology can produce simple changes to one's appearance such as a change in skin, eye, and hair color, but it can also produce more overt changes such as the enlargement or alteration of certain parts of the body such as arms, legs, and torso.

Kai had always theorized that the changes are made to a Conduit's body in order to handle the amount of energy and particles that passes through them on a regular. Part of what makes a Conduit so powerful and grants them such a wide array of abilities was that they generate great amounts of energy and force between molecules and particles around them, on them, or even part of them, allowing them to generate greater kinetic energy and other forces.

All of these leading to the now unconscious teenage boy that was laying on a bed of dirt and rubble.

"Go back and reassure the others that the situation is being taken care of and I have no need of assistance," Kai replied after a moment of silence, Toshi nodding in agreement. "I will see to the boy's recovery myself and, in the meantime, I will take some pictures for future reference."

Toshi bowed before ordering everyone else in the area to move out, the other yakuza immediately filing through the entrances. Kai switched on his camera and began to snap pictures of the place, making sure to get close-ups of the swords and pixels that littered the place.

_Hmm, perhaps his power is electricity or technology-based? But how to explain the swords..._

Kai decided to chance it and raised his hand towards one of the much more massive swords embedded in the concrete. Pressing his hand against the flat of the blade, Kai blinked in surprise as his hand proceeded to phase through the blade while more polygons dispersed from where his hand entered. Oddly, he felt a slight buzzing feeling going along his hand and arm as he continued to pass through. Pulling his arm out, Kai hummed to himself in fascination until the swords around Kai and Kazuto began to glitch and distort before vanishing with a brief warbling sound.

Kai hummed once again before simply staring at Kazuto's prone form. With an unreadable expression, he snapped his fingers. For a moment, there was a sound of shifting stone and dust before Kazuto's body began to move.

"I wonder..." Kai muttered. "What will you do with the power you now possess? What will you spare?"

Kai stared intently as Kazuto's body was lifted upwards, his yellowish eyes shining brighter and the sounds of moving stone became a little more prominent.

"And what will you destroy?"

* * *

It was dark.

It was cold.

Kazuto felt as if he was floating, yet at the same he was being held down. Perhaps the feeling could be described as being left submerged in water while your wrists and ankles were clasped in irons, chains connecting to anchors lying within the abyss below.

Yet, there was no feeling of suffocation.

And for that, Kazuto was unspeakably thankful. While drowning wasn't his biggest fear, he hated the feeling of not being able to breathe.

_What is this?_

Something kept Kazuto from speaking. His lips were apart, but he just... couldn't seem to bring himself to physically speak.

_What is this, please?_

Then, just then, there was a light. It was small, but Kazuto could definitely see it with unusual clarity, given the void-like environment he was in. The light was a bright blue and began to blink in and out. As it did this, it was either getting brighter or the source of the light, whatever it was, was approaching. If anything, he felt a sort of... connection with the light, though the connection seemed to fade in and out as well, fluctuating in intensity before the feeling had finally settled into a soft humming in his chest.

Either way, Kazuto did not particularly care. As long as the space he was in got brighter. This dark was unsettling.

In fact, the place he was in just felt... unspeakable. Infinite, nowhere, perpetual. Like the only things in this expanse of black was just him and that weird blue light, but he felt as if he was being watched at all angles.

_Please..._

Kazuto inhaled deeply as he closed his eyes.

_Please... just let me see._

In that instant, there was a sharp, high-pitched hum and Kazuto's eyes shot open. Blinking away the evident sleep in his eyes, he propped himself up, feeling the dipping and texture of a leather cushion against his palm. Evidently, he was laying on one of the couches in Chisaki's main office. A simple white blanket was draped over him before falling from his chest as he continued to rise.

"Talk to me, Hari."

Kazuto whipped his head to the left to see Kai Chisaki sitting at his desk sifting through documents of some variety while he had his phone resting between his shoulder and the side of his head.

Kazuto couldn't hear exactly what this "Hari" person was talking about, but it sounded important from the amount of attention Kai was giving it.

Kai sighed, "Of course, I figured as much."

What... what was going on here?

His senses fully regained, Kazuto lifted himself onto a seated position on the couch, only now noticing that something felt... odd.

For one, he felt a little heavier than usual and all of his muscles felt... sore. Like he had done a full workout using every single muscle fiber he had in his entire body. Looking down at his hands, Kazuto noticed how his hands and fingers looked less skinny and his arms looked a little thicker and more defined than usual.

"Yes, I'm sure they are, now thankfully Kirigaya has awoken so I can begin tests now," Kai said as he looked up at Kazuto from his documents. "Tell his family that, once again, he will be returned safely and in one piece, if a little... different."

Kazuto quickly got up from the couch, noticing how certain parts of the room felt... smaller? And his clothes felt a little tighter on him. Either way, he had to know.

"Hey, was that my aunt and cousin?!" Kazuto asked hurriedly.

Kai said nothing while holding up his free index finger as a sign for Kazuto to stop for a moment.

"Okay, and what of the Ice Conduit?" Kai asked while giving Kazuto a look that told him to remain silent.

Kazuto heard more chatter come from Kai's phone, the voice sounding a little disappointed about something or another.

"No new activity? Hmm, they must be laying low for now," Kai mused before sifting through more of the documents. "They might be stocking up."

Kazuto looked down at the documents to see a somewhat blurry picture of a figure in what looked like a thick, dark blue parka that seemed to reach below the wearer's knees, while the figure himself was standing on a floating platform of what was no doubt ice due to the jagged structure and stark white color. The figure wore a fur-lined hood over their head and thus kept their identity from view.

The Ice Conduit.

There were more, much clearer photos of massive ice structures that Kazuto had never seen before in any real world setting. Glaciers out in the frigid waters of the north and south poles was one thing, but this was something else entirely. There were more photos of people having their legs frozen, entire _buildings_ being either buried under a giant ice wall or completely frozen over, and ice spikes and shards of varying sizes impaled at certain points.

And then there was...

Kazuto gaped.

The photo showed the figure in the parka's mitten-covered hands extending outwards as if presenting himself to whoever his adversaries were while a literal _dragon made of ice_ encircled the rest of the photo.

All this, and there seemed to be two small, glowing spotlights where the eyes would be while the rest of the Conduit's face was covered in shadow. In fact, had Kazuto been in a more joking mood, he would've likened the Ice Conduit to that of an oversized Jawa.

But Kazuto was definitely _not_ in a joking mood. Instead, he was trying to process just what the actual _fuck_ he was looking at.

"Amazing, isn't it?"

Kazuto looked up to see Kai staring intensively at the photos while lightly brushing his fingertips over the film surface of the one with the ice dragon.

"The power to freely absorb, create, manipulate, and even _become_ a certain form of matter," Kai muttered before closing the folder. "And as of three days ago, you are officially a Prime Conduit."

Kazuto flinched as he processed those words in his head. The Static had returned, but instead of the erratic buzzing in his head, it had turned into a gentle hum in his chest which had sent very slight and comforting tremors throughout his body.

"Now, if you'll come to the mirror here, I'll begin explaining the changes which occurred with your body," Kai said, getting up from his chair and gesturing towards a full-body mirror. Kazuto nodded numbly before venturing over. "The Conduit gene, once activated, engages a physical reconditioning process throughout your body so as to better handle the constant passing and transfer of charged particles."

Now standing in front of the mirror, Kai gave him a small once-over with the clinical and professional look in his eye that you would normally see in a doctor.

_Right, he was a former neurosurgeon._

"Now then, please remove your shirt and jacket and I will begin my analysis," Kai said.

Kazuto looked Kai in the eye with some suspicion, especially since Kai was the one to shove him in that... _room._

"Yeah, before I do that, I have a question," Kazuto said firmly, much to Kai's amusement if his eye-roll was any indication. "What the actual hell was that room you put me in?"

Kai nodded, "I figured you would ask me that," Kai stated. "That room _was_ an anechoic chamber, one of the world's quietest rooms. The Conduit gene had to be activated by placing a certain amount of stress on you and the mental problems that come with being in such a chamber was the best I could do. If it makes you feel any better, I was about to pull you out because, believe it or not, I was concerned about your overall mental health, but I stayed my hand since you had begun to show the telltale signs of Conduit gene activation."

Kazuto's eyes narrowed before nodding, willing to accept his explanation.

Just... as long as he stayed out of that horrid place.

"As a matter of fact, when your gene activated, you destroyed the chamber," Kai added. "But I'll show you those images once I'm done, now will you please remove your shirt and jacket? I even went so far as to turn up the air conditioning to make it warmer in here."

Kazuto hesitated for a moment before doing what Kai asked. Something happened to him and he needed to know. Better he had someone to explain rather than discovering it for himself.

With his shirt and jacket discarded, Kazuto looked into the mirror and nearly choked on air.

Before him was the reflection of a lean and very toned torso in place of his usual thin self, his shoulders were noticeably broader and his arms were much thicker. His hair had become slightly longer and his facial features had become more refined along with the loss of fat and eyes that had become more narrow. Overall, while he was still somewhat thin, his muscles were very prominent.

Kazuto wasn't one to brag often, but this would definitely turn some heads at a local pool.

"As you can see, your overall muscle mass has expanded greatly and you've become taller as a result, six foot one to be exact," Kai explained. "Alongside the physical changes to your appearance, your strength and endurance will have been increased by a substantial amount and your stamina will be nearly limitless."

Kazuto hummed as he continued to examine himself. Increased strength, endurance, and stamina all sounded pretty decent. But Kazuto could tell there was more than just that.

After all, according to what Chisaki had said, he had just destroyed an entire room.

Kazuto was pulled from his thoughts when he felt someone grab his wrist and then heard a small slashing sound. Kazuto felt the palm of his hand buzzing a little bit, like when a limb falls asleep due to lack of circulation.

Looking down, Kazuto sucked in his breath as he watch blood leak from a slit in his hand. As odd as it was, Kazuto could barely feel any pain from it. Kazuto's eyes widened when strange blue particles flashed and danced around the slit in his hand and proceeded to seal the wound. The blue particles dispersed with a buzz, leaving perfectly unblemished skin behind.

Did he just...

"As you can see, you also have a very powerful regenerative factor that will heal you from just about any wound save for amputations and when damage becomes too excessive for the regeneration to keep up," Kai continued, placing a scalpel back next to his other medical items. "This translates to occurrences such as heavy, _heavy_ gunfire or if your head has been removed from your body. However, depending on the power you have, you could save yourself from even these things via toggleable intangibility or by producing defensive barriers that are strong enough to absorb the damage."

Great. So he was miraculously jacked and nigh-bulletproof.

"And finally, your Conduit power."

Yes, the thing that made him a Conduit. What element did he have control over?

"If you will follow me, I've erected a testing ground where we can narrow down what type of matter you can control," Kai stated before pulling out his phone. "Your power is something I cannot immediately identify, so we'll have to do this the hard way. Come, come."

The hard way. Kazuto didn't like the sound of that. Either way, Kazuto put on his shirt and jacket and followed Kai. Kai pressed an icon in his phone and put it up to his ear.

"Hari, it's time," Kai stated, much to Kazuto's confusion. "Bring them in."

* * *

Kai and Kazuto entered what looked to be a very advanced arena. There was a massive, dark concrete platform that was segmented into a variety of square and rectangular platforms with what looked like bulletproof glass panes that surrounded the arena. Within the arena itself looked to be a variety of standard-issue electronics and appliances such as televisions of various brands and makes, both new and old, and common household appliances like light systems and phone wiring.

So... what? Was his power electricity based?

"From what little I've gathered, your abilities seemed to be electricity or even digitally based judging from the swords you manifested upon activation," Kai stated as he presented the images of said swords to Kazuto. Kai would never admit it, but he enjoyed the way Kazuto's eyes bugged out of his sockets.

"So, to finally narrow it down, I have placed a variety of digital and electrical appliances within our arena for you to... experiment with at your leisure," Kai said as he pulled out a tablet. "While you are doing this, I will be recording and cataloguing your progress until you have finished. Until then, have fun."

Kai walked outside of the arena's fencings and situated himself in one of the bleachers that surrounded the entire arena. Kazuto blinked several times in total confusion before looking at all of the devices around him.

Doubtless, there was an odd feeling within him. Like something inside was being pulled by the surrounding objects while the air around said objects seemed to very slightly shimmer, like they were being surrounded by small heat waves, only without any heat.

"If you feel an odd connection to a certain object, concentrate and reach for it," Kai suggested without even giving Kazuto a passing glance, occupied by whatever was going on on his tablet. "The effects are almost immediate."

Raising a single brow at the suggestion, Kazuto took what Kai had said into consideration. It was true, he felt a much stronger connection from the television in the very center of the arena. The television was on, of course, the screen having the generic stand-by prompt with its blocks of colors occupying the entire frame. Hesitantly, he approached.

With each step he took, Kazuto could tell the feeling between him and the television was growing stronger, with his vision slowly fading into an odd blue hue. Taking a leap of faith, Kazuto reached towards the television.

**Bzzzzzzzzzzzt!**

Kazuto nearly jumped out of his skin as the television screen glitched in a rather violent fashion. Kazuto panicked slightly as he could not pull his hand away and froze in place as a large wave of bright blue particles and pixels drained itself from the television and onto his outstretched forearm.

Kai looked up from his tablet and watched in pure fascination as this phenomenon occurred.

The wave of pixels weaved themselves through the ambient air before latching onto Kazuto's arm. The odd buzzing feeling from when he regenerated had returned, this time spreading throughout his entire hand and forearm while the particles seeped through his skin.

Finally, with the particles having been absorbed, the television screen was left black.

Kazuto felt... empowered. Very empowered. He could feel the rush throughout his body as his perception became far sharper and he was able to see minute details, his muscles no longer felt sore and he felt as if he could run for miles on end.

_Okay... that could be habit-forming._

He looked back at Kai to see him staring back at Kazuto with approval.

"What... what was that?" Kazuto asked.

"Being able to absorb their given element is one of the many staples of a Conduit's range of abilities," Kai said. "Well, we now know that your power is not necessarily electricity based, otherwise you would've absorbed bolts and not pixels."

Pixels and not bolts, which meant...

"So... my powers are digitally based?" Kazuto asked before looking at his hand, watching in fascination as more blue particles fluttered around it.

"From everything that I have seen, yes," Kai answered, tapping once more on his tablet. "The manipulations of pixels and the television's reaction to your call indicates that you have control over digital energy and images, or simply put, _Video._ Now, cross-referencing that to fictional characters who have similar abilities, you can create just about anything from the digital and or virtual world by manifesting said object through hard-light projections."

"So what your saying is I absorb digital energy and convert it into physical holograms of almost anything I want?" Kazuto asked.

Kai nodded, "That and much more," Kai said. "You see, Conduits aren't just able to absorb and manipulate matter. Conduits are also able to _become_ their chosen element, which means you can also travel through electronics, wires, and perhaps even the Internet through the 'Video Form.' Although, I'd be careful with traveling through the Internet, as you can probably get lost very easily due to the constant streaming of information."

Kazuto felt his jaw hang loose as he processed what Kai had just told him. Traveling through the Internet?! That meant that he could be anywhere that he wanted around the entire world if he wanted! He could go half way across the world then back in the span of a minute!

The more he thought about it, his Video powers started to seem more and more overpowered by the second.

"In fact, why don't you try that form?" Kai suggested. "Keep in mind that a Conduit's power is most akin to a reflex, as it is a part of them and not something you need to activate, thought it might require a bit of concentration."

Nodding, Kazuto allowed himself to stand still for a moment, concentrating as the Static hummed once more and spread throughout his body. As odd as it was, it wasn't as much of a herculean task as he thought it would be. In fact, it felt very natural, as easy as breathing.

Kai was right. It was more of a reflex than it was a toggle.

**Hmmmm...**

Kazuto looked down at his hands and did a double take. His hands, arms, and now his entire body had been replaced with more of the odd blue pixels, but they were transparent, as if his body had been made up of a swarm of living blue glass. He could hear a constant warbling sound as he stood there, his form now changed into a mass of digital energy.

"Good, very good," Kai remarked approvingly as he tapped on his tablet even more. "I'd say, you're actually getting the hang of your new abilities faster than Conduits normally do. Most start off with rapid displacement and other movement based applications before moving onto full sustained embodiment, but you managed to get it on your first try without any immediate problems. I had expected there to be problems based off your... difficult experience within the anechoic chamber."

Kazuto nodded once more. Thinking back on it now, he was still very pissed off at Kai for just throwing him in that chamber for the sake of his research, but apparently it gave him this incredibly versatile power at his disposal. He guessed that that was something close to a silver lining, but still...

Kazuto turned his digital face in Kai's general direction, _"Hey, you said I was out for three days,"_ Kazuto said in a voice that made him sound like a character in a two-bit video game. _"Will I see my aunt and cousin again?"_

Kai stopped his tapping for a moment before looking up at Kazuto, "Yes, you will," Kai replied, much to Kazuto's relief. "In fact, I've sent two of my associates to bring them here to see you and your new talents."

The boy froze in place, his digital form wavering for a moment as a sign of his sudden discontent before he relaxed. Kazuto knew for a fact that it would be utterly stupid to keep this a secret to his friends and family. He had learned from many superhero films, books, manga and anime that keeping something like that a secret from your family can and will be seen as a sign of distrust and Kazuto trusted Midori and Suguha with his life.

No, this was something he should let them know about, whether he liked it or not.

"Now, it will take quite a while to actually get them here, so in the meantime, you can practice with your Video power and test the waters a bit," Kai suggested, tapping three times on his tablet before walking away. "If you want to make certain changes to the arena to better suit your... experiments, you need only to ask and I will have it done if it be within my power, as I can make this arena change to suit the situation."

Kazuto shifted back into his human form while adopting a thinker pose, "Hmm, I do kind of want to see where my Video powers takes me in terms of movement," Kazuto mused. "So could you..."

"Stylize the arena for movement purposes?" Kai finished, to which Kazuto nodded. "Consider it done. I suggest doing rapid displacements first. It's a basic technique, but a versatile and reliable one nonetheless."

For the first time in three days, Kazuto grinned slightly while looking at his hands, the blue pixels dancing across his arms briefly.

_This... might not be so bad._

* * *

_A couple hours later..._

Within the frigid confines of a moving black, windowless van, Midori and Suguha Kirigaya were situated on benches while sitting in an incredibly awkward silence. The silence was not helped by the heavy rain that had come about hours prior, which was odd considering it wasn't meant to rain this week.

The yakuza member that sat across from them was giving the main source of their discomfort a onceover. The firearm, judging by the size of both its assembly and magazine, was a light machine gun with a sort of charm hanging from a loop just above the handle, said charm being a golden snake with a black diamond pattern along its "scales." To their slight relief, his finger was off the trigger.

Maybe it was morbid curiosity or the desire to do away with the uncomfortable silence, but, perhaps against her better judgement, Suguha asked.

"So... what model is that?" Suguha asked, ignoring the incredulous look from her mother.

The yakuza blinked up at her before smiling, "This is a Bruen Mk9," the yakuza explained with pride. "It's an air-cooled open bolt 5.56 light machine gun that features a competitive rate of fire and excellent stability that can dominate any mid to long range battlefield."

Suguha nodded, doing her best to push her nervousness aside, "You seem to know a lot about it."

The yakuza nodded, "Yeah, being a manager of our arms, specifically of the heavier variety, it comes with the territory," he said. "This model was one of the two firearms handed down to me and my sister Tsubaki by our father. Tsubaki's the one driving."

Tsubaki waved back at them while keeping her eyes locked firmly on the road. Suguha hummed, staring at the Bruen for a while as the van continued to rumble along the road.

...

"The safety's on, right?"

Both the yakuza with the Bruen and Tsubaki burst out laughing.

"Hahahaha, of course it's on!" the yakuza said between laughs, chuckling a bit before sighing. "Yeah, yakuza in our group are strictly taught gun safety before we even get to hold one and we only bring them along for security reasons. By the way, I'm Kiba. Nice to meet you."

Suguha chuckled hesitantly alongside them. It was a good thing they were smart with their collection of weapons of mass destruction. Kiba seemed nice and both Suguha and Midori silently prayed that most of the other yakuza were similar, although this was simply their hope and they knew better than to expect this kind of pleasantness from the other members of their group.

The van made several sharp turns before ultimately coming to a slow stop, they felt the engine halt and the entire van become stock still while Tsubaki pulled the emergency brake and stowed away the keys.

"Alright, we're here," Kiba said as he moved from his seat and opened the backdoors. It was still raining rather heavily, but a little less so than when they left home.

Suguha and Midori were quick to exit the vehicle right after him, heavy rain, frigid cold and soaked clothes be damned. Three days without Kazuto was rather hellish considering they just got him back from the clutches of that accursed game. And now, out of the blue, he's taken by yakuza without any real explanation. It was high time that he returned home and maybe find a reason as to why they had him in the first place.

Kiba and Tsubaki could understand their haste. They had essentially just stole one of their loved ones with no warning and had been keeping him for three days straight with no big updates on his wellbeing, just saying that he was fine and that they should wait patiently. Kiba would've at least given them regular updates, perhaps in emails or texts, but only giving them the bare minimum and essentially just leaving them in the dark didn't necessarily sit well with him.

Either way, they were finally getting him back.

"The boss will see the both of you personally," Kiba stated. "I'll bring you to him."

Suguha and Midori said nothing as they both followed Kiba, who handed the Bruen to Tsubaki in which Tsubaki wordlessly walked away. Kiba lead the Kirigayas through a series of hallways and corridors while listening to the sounds of chatter from the other members.

After turning another corner, they began to hear something else rather faintly.

There were grunts of effort alongside a very odd buzzing and warbling that reminded them of a haywire television and sometimes a certain amount of static similar to that of an untuned radio.

"Good! Keep at it, anyone chasing you will not wait for you to recover!" ordered a voice as the grunts continued. "Remember! Keep your steps light and your eyes must be quicker than your legs!"

They heard footsteps from the other side of the metal door that both they and Kiba stopped at. Kiba turned to them.

"This is where I leave you," Kiba said as he walked in the opposite direction. "Take care."

Without another word, Kiba took his leave before turning the corner. Looking at each other for a moment before looking towards the door, Suguha and Midori waited for the boss of the yakuza to greet them.

Both Suguha and Midori blinked as a young man with short auburn hair, yellow eyes, and a black face mask opened the door. He held a tablet in his gloved hand and a stylus in the other, giving the impression of a scientist or a doctor. Funny, they expected an old man in a business suit carrying a fancy cane with various rings on his withered fingers.

"I take it you're Suguha and Midori Kirigaya?" the boss asked. They heard what was definitely Kazuto grunting, but with more clarity since the doors were left open. The odd buzzing sounds were also much clearer and, perhaps it was their imaginations, but they thought they felt the air itself shiver at regular intervals.

Seriously... what was going on? Was he fighting something or someone? Was he running? In his condition?

"Y-Yes," Midori said. "Please, can I see my nephew?"

The boss nodded, "Of course," he said with a slight bow. "I am Kai Chisaki, leader of the _Shie Hassaikai_ yakuza group. Please, follow me."

Midori said nothing as she followed Chisaki while Suguha stayed close to her side. Passing through the double doors, Midori and Suguha were greeted with the sight of a large arena. Perhaps to train their members or for entertainment purposes, they didn't really know. They could only make assumptions.

"I have to say, young Kazuto is incredibly tenacious and the speed in which he learns is most impressive," Kai praised, much to their confusion. "Alongside his exceptional ability to improvise and adapt, he has proven to be quite hard to catch if someone decides to pursue him. To be honest, I look forward to what he can do in battle."

Now they had even more questions. Last time they saw him, he was still limping around with the help of a crutch and was in no condition to fight. You could forgive them if they found it rather difficult to believe that Kazuto had managed to come to a full recovery in an instant when Nurse Aki said he wouldn't even be able to run until the next four weeks. Don't get them wrong, they were happy that he had made a full recovery (for some reason), they were simply curious as to how this had happened at all.

"And here he is," Kai said, gesturing towards the center of the arena.

Midori and Suguha's breaths were taken away as Kazuto dodged and weaved his way around the sizeable arena, with some places being occupied by large, metal shipping crates, some of them being stacked on top of each other while chain link fence rested in the spaces in between. Kazuto himself had apparently discarded his shirt and jacket, opting to run the many obstacles in only pants and shoes. They immediately took notice of the sheer amount of muscle he had gained, to say nothing of how prominent they were, especially at his abdominals, shoulders, and arms.

Next to them, Kai grinned beneath his mask as he hastily tapped an icon on his tablet, "Think fast!"

Three feet away from Kazuto, two metal plates within the arena slid slightly apart while another chain link fence immediately shot up through the opening.

Time seemed to slow as Kazuto's eyes widened, the distance between both the fence and himself rapidly closing and he needed to act fast.

Midori and Suguha blinked and shivered as the powerful sounds of static filled the air, and before their very eyes, Kazuto seemed to dissolve. Their eyes continued to widen each second as Kazuto shifted into a mass of blue polygons and other odd, distorted shapes. The mass of shapes slid through the chain link fence with absolutely no resistance while, at least in their perspective, Kazuto slowly but surely reconstituted himself to the other side.

With a final warbling sound, the process was complete and the static had disappeared. Kazuto had managed to reflexively shift clean through the chain link fence in a way that made the other Kirigayas' jaws hang loose.

Sighing, Kazuto looked over to Kai with annoyance, "Chisaki, what the hell was..." Kazuto's words trailed off and his annoyance disappeared without a trace upon seeing the shell shocked faces of his aunt and cousin. "Oh..."

 _'Oh' indeed, Kirigaya._ Kai grinned underneath his mask at Kazuto's reaction of the sudden arrival of his family.

Kazuto hurriedly fast-walked out of the arena. Once out, he had made for a towel and bottle of water that had been placed on a bench next to the arena. The first thing he grabbed was the water bottle, taking several long swigs from it, and finally removing it from his mouth with a sigh of satisfaction. He dabbed his head and the back of his neck several times with the towel, sighing again as the sweat was removed so that he was somewhat more presentable.

Slipping his black tank top back on, which was now being filled out quite snuggly around his chest instead of hanging loosely from his shoulders, Kazuto hummed as he had made himself more presentable. Or at least, as presentable as one can be after having gone through a couple hours of nonstop running, jumping and shifting through fences. In spite of this, Kazuto felt good about himself. He felt stronger, faster, and just more confident in general. Still, he had to explain to his family that he was now someone with more power than he knew what to do with.

Thankfully, Chisaki was there to explain most of it since Kazuto himself was still learning about the whole Conduit thing.

* * *

The four had decided to take their conversation to Kai's office. Kai had offered more orange juice to Suguha and Midori, though they had declined outright. They were there for answers and to bring Kazuto back home, that was it. Surely, even the boss of a yakuza organization could understand that.

Right now, Suguha and Midori stared incredulously at Kazuto as he continued to play with his apparent powers in odd ways, all within the palm of his hand. First, he had created a small field of swords, then he made a running panther, and so on and so forth until he clenched his fist. The pixels fizzled out and Chisaki cleared his throat.

Now that everyone's attention was on him...

"I'll cut to the chase," Kai said as he steepled his fingers while propping his elbows on his desk. "What you have witnessed was one of the many, many special abilities unique to a subspecies of empowered human beings called Conduits. Kirigaya here is a Conduit himself, with the ability to manipulate, absorb, and transform himself into digital energy."

"I just call my power Video," Kazuto remarked. "Makes it easier to say instead of 'the manipulation of digital energy and hard light projections.'"

"What are hard light projections?" Suguha asked. She had heard the term before, but never actually learned the meaning behind it. Digital energy, she understood well enough, just not hard light projections.

"Well, you know what holograms are, right?" Midori asked, with Suguha nodding in response. "Hard Light sort of works like that, except hard light is a sort of volumetric projection which resists things passing through it in the same way physical matter does. The hard light projection itself doesn't have mass, but it can almost perfectly replicate the texture, feel, and appearance of just about any form of real matter."

"So... like a hologram you can touch?"

"Essentially, yes."

"Yes, but we still have the Conduit matter to discuss," Kai stated in an attempt to keep the Kirigaya family on track. "I take it you have many questions?"

Midori nodded curtly, "Yes, I do. First off, how did you even know my nephew was this... 'Conduit' in the first place?"

Kai had paused for a moment, looking down for a moment before looking back up, "At this point, how or why I knew no longer matters," Kai replied. "What matters now is the fact that I was right and what any of you will do moving forward, especially given the sheer amount of power that is now in your nephew's possession."

Midori narrowed her eyes. She wanted to know, but she knew that, ultimately, Chisaki was right.

"Alright then," Midori conceded. "But why did you decide to give Kazuto this kind of power?"

"Oh, I didn't give him this power," Kai replied, much to their confusion. "I simply aided him in unlocking it."

"So... you're saying Kazuto had this sort of power all along?" Suguha asked.

"Yes, in fact, he was born with it from the very start," Kai stated. "Conduits, especially Prime Conduits like Kirigaya, have what is called a Conduit gene. Once activated, it causes drastic changes to one's physical appearance and constitution and then grants them the ability to control a certain form of matter, as I had said before."

"Okay, and what's changed with Kazuto, other than the Video thing?"

Kai hummed, "As you have most likely noticed, his body has been reconditioned upon activation and he is now more physically capable than the average human being," Kai summarized. "The main reason behind this change is because a Conduit's constitution must be able to properly handle the constant passing and conduction of charged particles. Alongside that, the reconditioning process can alter one's appearance, such as eye, hair, and even skin color regardless their given heritage."

"But this hasn't happened with Kazuto," Suguha mentioned as she looked at her cousin. Oddly, he had adopted a thinking position while staring very intently at the yakuza leader. He had not spoken in a while and it was starting to worry her.

"Indeed it hasn't," Kai agreed. "I said it _can_ alter one's appearance. I didn't say it was always the case. Some Conduits can unlock their power with absolutely no changes to how they look while others can look completely inhuman."

"So... is it possible for a Conduit to grow an extra set of limbs or something?"

Kai grinned beneath his mask, "It's a possibility, but I've yet to see it happen or read about such occurrences. And don't worry, the gene already changed Kirigaya once, it won't happen again."

Kai stayed silent as he gave the Kirigayas time to digest all the information he had given them. Though it was rather weird that Kazuto was staring at him with that rather analytical look in his eyes.

_Does... does he know? Or is he suspicious and just needs confirmation?_

Kai's eyes narrowed while Kazuto narrowed his eyes in turn. A pregnant silence befell those in the room and an almost unbearable pressure weighed down upon both Suguha and Midori as a profound tension rose between Kazuto and Kai.

_Well, only one way to find out._

"However, there is one more test I must have Kirigaya here take before you may go home," Kai stated, relieving the women in the room of the pressure.

Midori sighed in distaste, "Really? Another one? After having him for three days, what could you possibly want to test now?"

Kai looked back at Kazuto and, perhaps it was another trick of the light, but the Kirigayas could've swore that Kai's yellow eyes glowed for a moment. At this, Kazuto's suspicion had rose almost to the point of conclusion, but no. He needed confirmation from the source.

"For his final test..." Kai said, purposefully pausing for effect. "He will fight."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know, once again, another cliffhanger. Hope it's up to snuff.


End file.
